Gardening Gifts and the Connections they Make.....

We are, as humans, creators. As you invest your time in the reproduction/replenishing of flower and fauna, you are connecting with nature in a most wonderful way. You are, in essence, the mother of what you propagate, watching your offspring grow and thrive, nurturing/guiding it along when needed, and reaping the benefits of its strong growth and great beauty

 

To me, gardening is more than just digging a hole in the ground and dropping in a plant or two. it's a completely spiritual experience; a time to connect with Mother Nature and all her glory. As I dig in the dirt, it take in the aroma of the earth and feel as though i am making a contribution of sorts to my family, friends, community, and to myself. I feel that it is of great benefit to beautify your surroundings to every other living creature in your midst. I use the time spent in the garden for reflection, thinking of what was and what will become. I cannot help but feel a sense of hope and peace when I am in the garden.

 

 

This connection brings me to a great place of gratitude as well as accomplishment. Being grateful for the opportunity and ability to be one with the earth and the satisfaction of the contribution I have been able to make in my own little way.

 

 

In sharing my thoughts and feelings about my "garden experience" to you, I hope that the next time you go out into your garden you are able to take a moment and truly reflect on what it means to you, and how it benefits your well-being and peace of mind. If you do not have a garden (for whatever reason) you may want to reconsider the idea of being a gardener. you don't have to "go big". Start out small with a manageable space that does not overwhelm you at first. you can always increase its size as is wanted or needed. If land is unavailable, please consider container gardening. This type of gardening can be most creative as well as inspirational!

 

(All these photos are courtesy of my own garden!)

We are, as humans, creators. As you invest your time in the reproduction/replenishing of flower and fauna, you are connecting with nature in a most wonderful way. You are, in essence, the mother of what you propagate, watching your offspring grow and thrive, nurturing/guiding it along when needed, and reaping the benefits of its strong growth and great beauty

 

To me, gardening is more than just digging a hole in the ground and dropping in a plant or two. it's a completely spiritual experience; a time to connect with Mother Nature and all her glory. As I dig in the dirt, it take in the aroma of the earth and feel as though i am making a contribution of sorts to my family, friends, community, and to myself. I feel that it is of great benefit to beautify your surroundings to every other living creature in your midst. I use the time spent in the garden for reflection, thinking of what was and what will become. I cannot help but feel a sense of hope and peace when I am in the garden.

 

 

This connection brings me to a great place of gratitude as well as accomplishment. Being grateful for the opportunity and ability to be one with the earth and the satisfaction of the contribution I have been able to make in my own little way.

 

 

In sharing my thoughts and feelings about my "garden experience" to you, I hope that the next time you go out into your garden you are able to take a moment and truly reflect on what it means to you, and how it benefits your well being and peace of mind. If you do not have a garden (for whatever reason) you may want to reconsider the idea of being a gardener. you don't have to "go big". Start out small with a manageable space that does not overwhelm you at first. you can always increase its size as is wanted or needed. If land is unavailable, please consider container gardening. This type of gardening can be most creative as well as inspirational!

 

(All these photos are courtesy of my own garden!)

Dealing with Regret and Moving Forward on a Brighter Path....

 

Regrets are a form of emotional baggage carried by us all. Some, the figurative size of backpacks, others, the enormity of a full set of luggage all compartmentalized into each individual suitcase. This type of baggage is a heavy load to carry along life's path, holding you back and perpetually increasing in volume and mass if not addressed.

 

I would like to say that I have no regrets but then again, I'd be lying. And so would you if you said the same. If we were given the opportunity to turn back time and undo a choice or action, the vast majority would jump at the chance. Unfortunately, that cannot happen. You cannot turn back the hands of time. You cannot have a "Life Redo". But what you can do, is to revisit these adverse choices and their subsequent consequences with an honest and open heart.Then, choosing to learn from these mistakes and appreciating some of these self inflicted advertises as gifts of wisdom and knowledge.This helps us to not dwell on them. These experiences (in part) have led you to the place you are at this very moment in time. They are the culmination of who you are.

 

Reflecting on these circumstances will aid in your coming to peace with them. If you do not given them the proper acknowledgment you will be cheating yourself out of a future which includes good choice making skills and, in turn, the same mistakes will be repeated over and over. They may take on different forms, as time goes by but they will still, in essence, hold the same motivations.

 



 

Moving forward with a lighter load will help you to make better choices. It was also aid in drawing a more positive vibe your way. You will no longer feel held back and your self-pity factor will be greatly decreased if not all together eliminated.

 

If, during this reflective journey, you find an opportunity to right a wrong, please do. Being it as simple as an apology to some one you have hurt in the past. Validating the feelings of another who you have harmed is most important (if possible). Not only will they feel better but then so shall you.

 

I, myself, ponder my past choices quite often. I try to use them as good current decision-making tools. I can easily open my "backpack", take a reflective look, and close it back up till needed again. I make it a point to not forget these moments but to rather continually learn from them. You see, sometimes it is not as apparent as one would like, what the benefits of these adversities are until you find yourself at a certain place and time where they are called upon to show you their gifts.

 

May your load be lightened and you path be brightened!

For You.....

Make sure to set aside a moment each and every day to relax and decompress.

It could be as short as 5 minutes.

This is how you recharge your internal batteries, especially, during a busy/stressful day.

Breath in peace, exhale cluster.

QUOTES......

"If you want a kinder world, then behave with kindness; if you want peace in the world, make peace within."

~Dan Millman

QUOTES......

Thoughtful Thoughts.......

Adversity holds the power to bring forth hidden treasures within yourself that would otherwise never be revealed. Embrace these gifts with gratitude and acceptance. The light of peace will then await you.

Family far and away........

Growing up in the northeast, I moved around a lot, but always lived within a 50 mile radius of my very large family. This made them all very accessible at all times and therefore a constant part of my life, until the the age of 18 when we (my immediate family) all packed up and moved across the country. Waiting for us in Arizona were a few family members that had moved there a couple of years back. For the next 15 years or so, I stayed in Arizona, far away from the bulk of my family members. It was an adjustment at first, but as time went by, it became my new norm.

Married with a toddler and pregnant with my second child, my husband and I decided to take the position offered to him in Texas by his current employer at the time. He went ahead of us, and after my son was born, me and the kids met him there and stayed for 4 years. After that, he was offered another position in the Mid-Atlantic, across the country; and off we went.

I was done with the desert and longed to be back east. This is where I wanted to raise my kids. This is were I felt they would thrive and this was the place that I wanted to call home forever more. 11 years later, we are still here and I am grateful every day. It was one of the best decisions for my little family.

I share this with you, dear reader, so that you know where I am coming from when I speak to the many issues faced when living far away from your family. Making these choices to leave your loved ones is never an easy one. I have based my own decisions to move by what I thought would be best for my family. If that meant having to move away, then so be it.

My children have never known what it is like to be raised in a large family. They have never had the experience of playing with all of their cousins. Nor have they had the opportunity to be able to go the Grandma and Grandpa's whenever they wanted. They do not know the joy of great family gatherings during the holidays or the fun of an impromptu visit from aunts and uncles.

The fact that they have not been able to experience the love and closeness that comes with being surrounded by family makes me sad for them. They know no different, but I do. They have not suffered a loss, but I know what could have been. With all this being said, I still feel that these decisions were the right ones. The fact that they have thrived, regardless of the absence of extended family, is proof that is was.

I want to let you know, dear reader, that if you have to or have made the choice to move away from family that it will be alright. You will adjust and can start a new chapter in your life with a relocation away from your loved ones without any guilt. If you choose to move for the betterment of your family's quality of life, let no one guilt you into staying. You must do what is best for you and your family. If those around you love you, in a true and selfless way, they will let you go and not try and selfishly hold you back. (I know that there are extenuating circumstances to these statements, but for this post, I must generalize)

The other motivator for writing this post today is the current situation many are finding themselves in due to the poor economy. We all know someone, if not ourselves, who is suffering with financial difficulties. During these unfortunate times, we are having to make the most difficult choices. In some instances, one of them could be the decision to have to move their family far and away from their loved ones in order to either keep their current job or find a new one. If this is the case, I want you to know that even though these moves are difficult, you will find peace of mind in the end. I want you to have faith that you and your family can get through this life change. I want you to hold out hope for the brighter future that awaits your family, even though it may take you away from those you love.

Please remember that once you and another person are close at heart, you are forever close souls. No matter how far apart you may reside from each other, your love has no boundaries and your soul does not know space and time. You are forever bonded. You are always near and dear to those that matter most, no matter how close you live to each other or how far.

I wish you well. I wish you success. I wish you peace of mind.

Telling others how PROUD you are of them is most important and we all need to hear it....

We are all born with the basic need to feel loved and accepted. One of the ways in which we show each other our fondness is by telling them how proud we are of them. We need to hear such things from our friends, peers, loved ones, and most of all, our parents (or caregivers). The act of telling your children how proud you are of them is one of the many fundamental building blocks of a healthy self image.

In order for us to feel good about who we are (and in turn feel good about those we choose to surround ourselves with) we must feel a sense of worth and importance. This positive self image is then perpetuated by the way in which we treat others as well as ourselves. If someone expresses that they really never care about how others feel about them, or that they don't require approval of any kind, they are not being truthful with you and most importantly, are lying to themselves. They are in denial and therefore, at times, can seem cold and unaffected.

If we are not nurtured with prideful caregivers, this leaves us forever seeking approval in others, often at our own expense. We then become victims and travel in the same dysfunctional circle for a lifetime, never finding the peace within ourselves to know that we are important and that we can accomplish great things; always wondering why we are not good enough and why life is so unfair. When a parent neglects their child in this way, they feel either consciously or subconsciously a sense of emptiness or a void. Until they are able to revisit and resolve their parents/care giver's shameful behavior and come to realize that the rejection they have felt had nothing to do with them but with the caregivers themselves, they will not have inner peace.


I share this subject today, with you, dear reader, for I was inspired (yesterday) by some one very special and important to me who has gone out of their way to show me this type of acceptance over the past few weeks. And for this, I am truly grateful. My hope for you is to help free you up of any old negative preconceptions about your worthiness and abilities.

We all have many accomplishments to be proud of. These accomplishments need not be monumental. They could be as simple as just getting through a rough day, not loosing your temper, helping out a dear friend, finishing a project on time, or smiling when you feel like crying. You should be proud of yourself each and every day. You should also say the words out loud: "I am very proud of you!" to those who deserve it, when it is appropriate and true.  These kind words should mean as much to you as to the recipient. Now, watch their face light up with delight!

Be Proud. Be Happy. Be True.

Saying "I Love You" often and honestly.......

The three most powerful words ever spoken from one to another: "I Love You". When spoken with an honest and open heart, this phrase carries the most weight when voicing our true feelings of closeness. On the other hand, these same words, when spoken with a cold and calculating heart, can be the most manipulative and selfish words uttered to another.

I make it a point to tell the ones I care for deeply that I love them often. Whether it be in person, on the phone, via e-mail, text or by any other means of communication. When I speak or write these words, I mean them every time. I hold great reverence for this phrase and would never use it for any reason other than the purpose than it implies.

Unfortunately, I cannot say this for everyone. I cannot hold true that whoever says this phrase honestly means it. I have seen and heard this phrase being misused and abused by many. I have come to learn that these insincere individuals take advantage of others by using these words to manipulate and hold power. You see, dear reader, "I love you" holds much power because of its monumental meaning.

I would like you to take a bit more time to show your love and to speak it out loud as often as necessary with grace. You may find by doing this that the recipients will be more receptive to your true feelings than you might have otherwise thought. People do need to hear these words from their loved ones. It's a positive affirmation as well as a call to comfort and acceptance. We all need to be loved, and to know that we are loved is of utmost importance. Please also be mindful of those around you who are not sincere in expressing their love for you. Look to see beyond these words for what ulterior motive may be behind it. Do not allow yourself to succumb to another's lies and deceit in order to fulfill a need. It will only end in a most hurtful and painful way.

My hope for you, dear reader, is to have a life filled with love and laughter. To be happy and secure within yourself so that you can share your love with one another in a most pure and beautiful way. With only sincere intentions, and an open heart.

One great big hug after another, for one another.......

I am and have always a been a big hugger. It must be the Italian in me (100 percent!). It must also be from being from such a large family. You see every time we all got together, which could be up to several times a week, I went around and gave every single person in the room a bug hug. We all did. Big hugs and big smiles.

When you are allowed and encouraged to express yourself in this very personal way as a child, you find that it becomes second nature through out your adult life. You also find that it becomes a necessity. You feel compelled to give out hugs freely and you in turn accept their warmth in embrace openly.

There is no other feeling that I know of that can replace what a hug does for your mental well being. I cannot completely express all of the emotions that are awakened with the act of hugging, for they are so vast and encompassing. But what I can share is that they release a multitude of endorphins into your system bringing you to a happy place (a peaceful resting stop, if you may).

I write about this subject today, dear reader, for the ones who have not had the opportunity to be given the gift of hugging. By this I mean that they were raised devoid of expressing themselves on this level of connection. To the ones that find it hard to let people get close on a physical level. To those who find it most difficult to let go and wrap their arms around another in a long, warm, and sincere embrace. Not being able to connect on this level and therefore not able to experience the pure comfort and acceptance with such closeness.

When you do not know how to allow others to get close to you in a physical way, in many cases, you also may find that your emotional output is also stunted and that you cannot get as close to people as you might like to because you have not be taught (from infancy/childhood) how to do so. The result is a lack of trust and connectedness to rest of the world around you.

While we innately as humans are born with the desire to feel warmth and comfort, the act of hugging is nurtured into each individual. With much repetition, we associate hugging with feelings of expressing love. These hugging connections are made in the brain at the earliest of developmental stages. Continued exposure to this activity strengthens ones' desire to perform this loving action.

My hope is that you all, dear readers, give and receive as many hugs as possible and if you have difficulties with this issue, that you can find some way, deep within yourself to reach out to those around you and give it a try. Once you feel the power of a true hug you will forever be a believer. Hugs heal. Hugs give comfort. Hugs show acceptance. Hugs are love.

We all run in Circles........

One could consider life's journey as a series of circles. In the beginning we all have one main circle of life to complete. While traveling along this circle we will find offshoots of connecting circles that also need to be completed. All of the spheres intertwined with every other individual we come across connecting us all in one way or another. Either traveling along the same circle for a short or long period depending on our spiritual needs.

Some circles are thicker and therefore more complex to navigate along. While others will be small and narrow, shorter and easier, if you will. The common denominating factor of each and every one is that they must all be completed in order to reach a more peaceful and harmonious life. For each circle's completion holds a journey filled with wisdom and enlightenment. If certain circles are not completed you will find yourself continually on a dead-end path that brings only frustration and rejection with a lower sense of one's self.

At times, we may find that a certain circle has become weak or broken or that we ourselves have become weary and tired from traveling so long on it. In these case, we must makes many choices. Do you try and fix it and continue to move along or do you abandon it and consider on an easier more pleasing path. And what would the consequences you will encounter be, if you made a decision one way or another?

The closer the souls are to one another, the greater the chances are of traveling within same circles. With smaller gaps in between, resulting in similar outcomes, which strengthens the bonds between us. For you see,  I believe that we are all connected through these circles and each individuals journey ultimately effects another in either a positive or negative way, and so on, for infinity and throughout eternity.

I know, this sounds a little "way out" and "new age-y", but I thought I should share with you, dear reader, how I view life in a metaphorical way in order to give you a bit of an insight to my mind's eye. You see, this blog, in itself, is a circle of mine in which I encourage you to join me, in order for you to complete your own circles in a more effective and loving manner. We can even hold hands along the way!